


The Start of...Something

by LeedlingwithRageHappy



Series: Prompt Challenge 2016 [13]
Category: Rooster Teeth/Achievement Hunter/Funhaus RPF
Genre: First Meetings, Florist AU, Fluff, Friendship/Love, M/M, One Shot, POV Second Person, Raychael - Freeform, practice writing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-03
Updated: 2016-07-03
Packaged: 2018-07-19 23:01:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,470
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7380961
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LeedlingwithRageHappy/pseuds/LeedlingwithRageHappy
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Ray has a bumpy start with Michael</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Start of...Something

**Author's Note:**

> Prompt #20: A story written in 2nd person narrative

The first time the two of you meet, it’s a disaster. You’re running down the hall with boxes upon boxes stacked in your arms, blocking your eyesight not to mention what it’s doing to your balance. You don’t care though because this is an emergency and the customers aren’t waiting. 

All of a sudden, you feel concrete hit your back, the breath instantly leaving your body as the boxes tumble down towards your face. You stare wide-eyed at nothing at first until you realize that you’re now looking directly at the ceiling and then start to push the boxes off as the pain shoots through your body. 

“Watch where you’re fucking going,” a voice mumbles next to you. Once you emerge from the pile, you see an unfamiliar face grimacing as he pushes himself up. He looks like an angry toddler with his curls bouncing around when he shakes his head and he slams his glasses back onto his face.

“You watch it,” you counter because, hey, he’s not the only one who fell today. 

You grit your teeth and begin collecting the boxes as Glasses Guy, as you’ve so dubbed him, stares at you. A comment about helping sits on your tongue, but you decide against it especially when a second later, he helps with the last two boxes. 

“Sorry,” the guy mutters, heading in the opposite direction while you’re still standing in the doorway. 

Shaking your head, you decide to drop the incident and rush back out to the main room just as Geoff starts calling for you.

~

Turns out, Glasses Guy is the newest employee at Geoff’s floral shop and you’re bothered to say the least. On the one hand, you’ve already taken a particular disliking to the guy after he bowled you over, though he did attempt to help in passing, which redeems himself a little bit. Only a little. 

Michael is his name, you find out, but you’re not going to start calling him by name just yet. You want to test the waters first and see what this guy’s all about. After introductions, the two of you are on the same shift with a few other coworkers and you can see them already smitten with the new guy. At first, you don’t get why it bugs you. Plenty of others have joined the team and you’ve been more than welcoming. With Michael, things feel different, like everything was placed two inches to the left and everyone knows it except you. 

You push it to the back of your mind to get through the shift as pain-free as possible and only hope things change as the days pass.

~

Things do not change out as the days pass.

In fact, you get more and more irritable with each shift because even though you’re not working with Michael (courtesy of begging to Geoff), his name is mentioned almost every other sentence.

Michael, this. Michael, that. He’s so perfect.

Except he’s not. Granted, you’ve only worked with him a handful of times, but each time has been utter shit. If he’s not yelling at himself, he’s yelling at you when you’ve done nothing wrong. Maybe arguing and stealing the water can from him wasn’t the best idea, though looking back, there was little else you could do. Even when you attempted to be civil, he brushed you off like you weren’t worth his time. It hurt at first and now it just makes you angry. 

Eventually, it gets to the point where just hearing the letter “M” form on someone’s lips nearly sends you into a frenzy and you have to hold yourself back from strangling a few coworkers. 

No one else understands and you don’t expect them to either.

~

It’s not until a month after Michael’s employment that you want to stop hating him. It takes up too much energy and if you’re spending all your time thinking about someone who makes you upset, what does that make you? The two of you dislike each other for petty reason and that really shouldn’t get in the way of work.

So, when Wednesday rolls around, you’re tending to the plants while waiting to open up the shop when the bell at the front door jingles. In walks Michael and you steel yourself for whatever he has to say because even though you’ve decided to stop the hate, it doesn’t mean he has. 

To your surprise, Michael nods at you while saying, “Ray,” before greeting the other workers in a more cheerful manner. 

You stare at Michael until he disappears into the back room, not quite believing that he actually said your name in a way that didn’t have malice dripping on every letter. Your thoughts are so consumed by the minuscule incident that you don’t even notice the water overflowing from the plants until some spills right onto your new Vans. 

Your brain immediately blames Michael.

~

It’s absolute chaos. 

Why you had agreed to work the day before Valentine’s, you don’t know. Then again, Geoff had such a desperate look in his eyes that you couldn’t exactly turn down the man. 

Plants are getting knocked over, people are ramming into each other, and you’re getting yelled at by a customer for the fifth time. You haven’t even had your lunch break yet. 

As the person screams at you, you’ve already tuned them out, nodding and apologizing at the appropriate places when all you want to do is cry. Not that you’d give them that satisfaction though. The customer’s fist slams down on the counter, making you jump and refocusing back on the conversation. If it could even be called that at this point. They’re demanding that they get their money back, but because they don’t have the receipt, things have hit a brick wall. 

You readjust your glasses to steady your nerves, opening your mouth to answer until an unusually soft, “I’ve got this,”-cuts in first and a hand rests on the middle of your back.

Your head turns sharply, heart thumping as you’re hoping it’s not who you think it is, but the curls and freckled face confirm everything.

Michael puts on his best PR face for the customer before shoving you to the side. It’s not a hard shove though, more of one that’s telling you to get out while you still have the chance. Not letting a good opportunity go to waste, you rush out of the main room and finally catch your breath as you clock out for lunch. 

You so owe Michael for this one.

~

After the holiday season dies down a bit, you don’t see much of Michael. You still hear about all the good work he’s doing and you slowly start to realize why everyone really loves Michael. If anyone can handle the customers, it’s him, even if some disputes have ended in a screaming match between him and the buyer. You find out from Geoff that he’s also never missed a day of work, even taking on extra shifts when people have been sick or needed time off. You’re a little embarrassed from judging so harshly in the first place, but what’s done is done. All you can do now is better yourself from there.

Finally, and not after weeks and weeks of pestering Geoff, you and Michael get a shift together. You can’t help it, but butterflies have been in your stomach since the start of the day. The two of you carry on light conversations as you both switch between the cash register and plant tending, along with a large part of you wishing this had happened sooner.

You find out the two of you have a lot in common and you even get the bravery to crack a few jokes here and there. Michael’s laugh is infectious, making you grin each time you hear it. You suspect the other workers are taking notice, especially since they seem to be giving you and Michael your space. It’s one of the best shifts you’ve had since you started working for Geoff and on your break, you tell the older man so just in case he offers to let you stay later. All the more time with Michael.

~

As the two of you lock up for the night, Michael hesitates and you stop as well, waiting for the next step.

“We should work together again, Ray,” Michael finally blurts out. “It was fun.”

You agree and tell Michael such without a second thought. The other man seems pleased with your response, giving you a small wave before heading off down the street, shoulders hunched to block out the crisp night air. You watch him for a little bit, a smile creeping on your face, and then make your way home as you’re filled with a warmth unlike any before.


End file.
